Whilst we provide council housing in Wrexham County Borough, the number of vacancies we have every year is never enough to meet demand.
To have the best chance of finding somewhere suitable to live, you should consider all the options that are available and work out what you can afford.
A place you can afford means that after you have paid your rent, you still have enough money to be able to pay bills such as food, gas, electricity, toiletries and your phone.
Claiming financial support: check the bedroom limit
If you claim Housing Benefit (HB), Universal Credit (UC), or Local Housing Allowance (LHA), you must look for a property that has the right number of bedrooms for you and your family.
This is to make sure that you do not have to pay for any unused bedrooms through a rule called ‘removal of the Spare Room Subsidy’, also known as the ‘Bedroom Tax’.
As a general rule you can have 1 bedroom for each single person aged 16 or older but two people are usually expected to share a room if they are:
- a couple
- both under 10 years old (regardless of sex)
- both between 11 to 16 years old (of the same sex)
Even if you claim full benefit, you will only be able to claim help to meet the cost of renting a property that regulations say you need.
Local Housing Allowance rates in Wrexham County Borough
Depending on your income, if you rent a privately owned property you can claim Local Housing Allowance (LHA), to help you meet the cost of the rent. The amount you can claim depends on the size of your household and the size of the property.
Please remember, if you are a single person aged under 35 years, you will only be able to claim the LHA needed to meet the cost of renting a room in a shared house.
Weekly LHA rates (since March 2024)
The amount you can claim every week to help to pay your rent depends on the type of property you are in:
- Shared accommodation: £90.05
- 1 bedroom: £109.32
- 2 bedroom: £120.82
- 3 bedroom: £138.08
- 4+ bedroom: £172.60
If you choose a property that has a higher rent, you would need to pay the rest from your own money.
How much help will I get to pay my rent?
Once you know how many bedrooms you are entitled to you can work out this amount based on your total household income in benefits and wages.
You can check and get an estimate of how much you could receive, by using an online benefit calculator, such as:
When you complete it, please be as realistic as possible and try to include what you actually spend.
If you have a car, remember to include the cost of the tax, insurance and paying for the MOT every year.